Locus (Red vs. Blue)
Locus (real name: Samuel Ortez) is one of the main antagonists of the Chorus Trilogy (specifically the main antagonist of Season 11, the secondary antagonist of Season 12, and an anti-hero in Season 13), as well as one of two protagonist villains (alongside Felix) in his story arc in Season 14. He is a dangerous mercenary who was hired by the Federal Army of the planet Chorus. However, his true affiliation is with the Space Pirates, taking orders from their superior named Control. He returns in Season 15 as a supporting character, reformed as an anti-hero of sorts, and even becomes an ally of the Reds and Blues. He is voiced by Gray G. Haddock, who also voiced Roman Torchwick in RWBY. Role in Plot Early Years Before becoming involved in the Chorus Civil War, Locus was enlisted into the UNSC, where he met and developed a rivalry with Felix. While fighting in the Great War, Locus and his squad became involved in one of the worst battles in UNSC history. In order to survive, Locus and Felix were forced to band together and fight side by side. After the war ended, however, the two were unable to return to civilian life and were later hired by an unknown superior to eradicate the people of the planet Chorus. With the help of other mercenaries, Locus and Felix joined the Federal Army of Chorus and the New Republic respectively, and together, the mercs escalated the events of the war in order to complete their mission. Hunting the Reds and Blues Locus discovers Washington's call for help after the Reds and Blues are left stranded on Chorus, but doesn't respond. Locus later arrives at the teams' location and begins spying on them, remarking the situation they're in as unfortunate before cloaking himself. Later on, Locus kills the pilot that dropped off Doc, Donut, and Lopez and reports in to 'Control', stating that his objective is complete and that he's returning to Crash Site Bravo. Back at the crash site, Locus once again spies on the teams, but soon turns his sights on Felix. When the latter notices him, Locus activates his cloaking and returns to F.A.C. Outpost 22. He gathers four of his men back to Crash Site Bravo, where they proceed to attack the Blues. But when his men are killed by Tucker and Freckles, Locus attempts to shoot Wash in the head, but Felix intercepts and blocks the blow with a Hardlight Shield. Locus then injures Felix and orders the Blood Gulch Crew to come with him, but they refuse. After Locus threatens them, Wash orders Freckles to fire upon him, but Locus disappears before being hit. Battle at Crash Site Bravo Afterwards, Locus returns to the crash site, accompanied by many more Federal soldiers, and engages the group. During the battle, Locus uses a Sticky Detonator to destroy the Blue Team's tank, and later fires at a plasma grenade behind Donut, knocking the latter unconscious. As the Reds and Blues retaliate, Locus fires several blasts from his Railgun towards Wash and Sarge, incapacitating them. As New Republic reinforcements arrive, Locus attempts to stop Felix, Simmons, Grif, Tucker, and Caboose from escaping into the caves, but fails when Wash has Freckles seal off the entrance by collapsing the tunnel's roof. Despite this, Locus manages to incapacitate Wash afterwards and the Feds take the four back to F.A.C. Outpost 37. After the battle, Locus communicates with a superior (soon revealed to be Carolina), whose voice is distorted, and informs her about a crate he recovered. He then asks if keeping Sarge, Donut, and Washington alive was the best course of action, but Carolina challenges him, asking if he feels threatened by them. When he responds negatively, Carolina reaffirms for him to obey orders before stating that she would see him soon. True Intentions Later on, General Doyle convinces Wash, Sarge, Donut, and Lopez to join the Federal Army, where Locus reveals to them that his raid on their base was fully calculated and choreographed, as his orders were to apprehend them. He then gives Wash a storage unit containing Freckles' "heart and mind," before leaving. Several weeks later, Locus returns to F.A.C. Outpost 22, where he kills a disguised Cunningham. He then discovers Felix, Tucker, and Palomo at the compound, but they escape after detonating the last C-4 charges. Afterwards, Locus radios Jackson and his team to act as escorts to the Reds and Blues, but the group reunite with their friends and learn the truth about the war. As a result, Locus and his mercenaries kill numerous Federal soldiers at F.A.C. Outpost 37 and surround the Blood Gulch Crew. When Felix arrives, he reveals his true loyalties and, despite Locus' protests, explains to the Reds and Blues that he and Locus were hired to clear Chorus of its residents, and used them to help fan the fire. Once Carolina reveals herself, Locus attempts to kill the Reds and Blues, but the former uses a Teleportation Cube to escape with her friends. With them gone, Locus and Felix argue over the Blood Gulch Crew's escape and Carolina's infiltration of their operation without them knowing, until they are called up by Control. Control orders the two to return to their respective armies and inform them that the Reds and Blues are dead, which Locus agrees to. As the Federal Army prepare for battle against the New Republic at Armonia, Locus informs Doyle that he is leaving to intercept Felix, and will return to "take care" of him. In actuality, Locus joins Felix at Radio Jammer Station 1C in contacting the Reds and Blues, where the two offer the group a first-class trip off Chorus. Although the Blood Gulch Crew express their distrust, Locus assures them that they will keep their word and gives them one hour to make their decision. However, the crew instead execute a sneak attack on the mercenaries at the radio jammer station, where Locus battles Wash one-on-one. He questions why he continues to fight for the Reds and Blues, stating that he used to be a true soldier. Wash dismisses this and describes Locus as a coward for hiding behind his "soldier" ideology, prompting Locus to attack him. After the other Reds and Blues disable the radio jammer, Epsilon sends Felix's recorded words to the Feds and Rebels at Armonia, who finally learn secret behind the Pirates' involvement in the war. Because of this, Locus and Felix teleport away, with Locus vowing that they will return. Going to War With their plans now exposed, Control scolds the two mercs for their failure and suggests the Space Pirates go to war on the planet. However, the Blood Gulch Crew intercept their transmission and acknowledge Control's true identity: Chairman Malcolm Hargrove. They then accept The Chairman's declaration of war. In order to even the odds, Locus and Felix raid the UNSC Tartarus, kill the crew members and "recruit" several of its prisoners. One prisoner in particular, Aiden Price, tells Locus and Felix that he possesses specific information about Project Freelancer that nobody else does, proving himself as an asset. Price then leads the two to another prisoner that can aid them. Sometime later, Locus and Felix return to Crash Site Alpha on Chorus, where The Counselor informs them of his psychological sessions with Sharkface. When the tractor beam tower they are located in suddenly shuts down, a response to Tucker's reactivation of an alien temple, the two discover a map appearing behind them that emits coordinates to a location. The map's coordinates lead the two to a Jungle Temple, where they are contacted by Hargrove, who chastises them for their repeated failures against the Blood Gulch Crew. In order to motivate them, The Chairman offers a modified version of The Meta's armor if they eliminate the Reds and Blues. If they fail again, however, he will give the armor to another individual who will instead hunt down and kill him and Felix. The two mercs later stumble upon a "gateway" at the temple and enter it to find out where it leads. After Locus goes through the gateway, he sees an illusion of an event from his past detailing him, Felix, and other UNSC soldiers interrogating a "monster"; which the soldiers believe Locus to be. When the illusory Locus proposes they restrain the monster rather than kill it, his CO angrily tells him that he is nothing more than a suit of armor and a gun, and will follow orders without question. Upon witnessing this, Locus gets angry and is exited out of the gateway; where he reunites with Felix and the pirates. Demanding to know what Felix saw, the latter replies that he saw frightening things inside. Deciding not to use the gateway, the pirates depart from the temple. Afterward, Locus and Felix return to Crash Site Alpha and ambush Kimball's assault team. As space pirate reinforcements are brought in by the Tartarus, the two mercs are contacted by Sharkface, who informs them of the planet's Purge as well as the location of a key that activates it. As a result, Felix leaves to accompany Sharkface while Locus remains at Alpha. As the mercs gain the upper hand, Wash radios Locus and fools him into revealing his position, allowing the lieutenants to fire at him. After Locus is forced into cover, the assault team release a smokescreen and escape, with Wash telling Locus that he is a true soldier while the latter is simply a killer. Charon's Final Assault Locus then flies a Falcon over to the east mountains and picks up Felix, who steals the key from Doyle. However, they soon discover that the key will not operate until Doyle is killed, prompting Felix to threaten Sharkface for not telling them of this, until Locus intervenes. After he orders the two to stick to their objectives, Locus contacts The Counselor and asks him about The Meta. The Counselor explains The Meta's history as a Freelancer, Sigma's influence on him, and elaborates on his death. Locus asserts that The Meta aimed to become a weapon, much like himself, though The Counselor corrects him and states that in reality he wanted to become more human. He then notes Locus' change in behavior after his trip through the portal at the Jungle Temple, but Locus denies this. When The Counselor asks him if he wishes to know Felix's fear, Felix interrupts them and informs Locus that he is needed with the rest of the team. After the two board the Tartarus, they initiate an attack on Armonia, led by Sharkface, in order to kill either Tucker or Doyle and obtain their keys. However, after the Chorus armies and Blood Gulch Crew evacuate the city with Tucker, the pirates proceed to chase after Doyle, who chose to remain in Armonia. As the pirates surround Doyle, the latter detonates the city's nuclear reactor in an act of self sacrifice, killing a majority of them. When a merc informs Locus and Felix of this, Locus orders the pilot to get them out of the city. After sustaining massive casualties, Locus and Felix, who now have the key under their control after Doyle's death, return to the Jungle Temple in order to get Santa to activate the Purge. Although they will be safe, Locus expresses his concern about the safety of their comrades guarding the Communication Temple, but Felix tries to convince him that their lives are irrelevant. After Felix leaves, Locus asks Santa what Felix is most afraid of only for Santa to say that the answer is obvious. Following this, both mercenaries arrive at the Purge but are confronted by Wash and Carolina. Upon being informed that their fellow pirates are under attack by the Feds and Rebels, Locus and Felix engage the Freelancers. After a long and brutal fight, the Freelancers inform the two that they were simply stalling them and reveal that their base, Crash Site Alpha, has been taken over. Soon afterward, the Tartarus emerges from the sky, being pulled towards the Purge. As a result, Locus takes cover behind Felix's light shield and the two manage to survive the destruction. Redemption Although Locus is left exhausted, Felix takes him onto their Falcon and flies over to the Communication Temple. Upon arriving, Locus admits defeat and tries to persuade Felix to stand down, but Felix snaps at him claiming that he is finishing the fight for himself only. While Felix fights the Reds and Blues alone, Locus is met by Santa, who reveals to Locus that Felix is afraid of Locus himself. Upon learning this, Locus approaches the crew and betrays Felix by giving up his weapon, admitting that he's not a soldier, but a monster. Felix pleads with Locus telling him they need each other, but Locus shrugs him off. Angered at his betrayal, Felix attacks Locus and the crew but is eventually killed by them after the crew blast him over the Temple edge to his death below the clouds. Afterward, Locus picks up Felix's discarded sword, becoming its bearer, and activates the Temple for the Reds and Blues. Although the crew refuse to forgive Locus, the latter expresses his understanding and assures them that he will make things right, before cloaking and leaving. Several months later, Locus comes across Lopez's helmet floating in space, becoming informed of the Reds and Blues being in danger at the hands of the Blues & Reds. Both seek out Grif, who had quit the team weeks before. Locus finds him and, after much effort, successfully recruits Grif to help him free the Reds and Blues. Personality Locus is portrayed as a quiet and cold individual who completely dedicates himself to his objectives, ignoring any emotions he has in order to stay stable. According to Felix, "Locus is so far off the deep end he prefers to go by the name of his armor instead of the name he was born with." Cold, unfeeling, and without any outward showings of empathy or mercy, Locus appears to be the perfect tool to hire for any sort of job, following all orders to the letter. However, he takes little joy in completing his tasks; when the Dropship Pilot asks him whether or not he knew about a crashed spaceship, Locus seemingly gives the pilot a chance to save himself, stating that reporting the crashed ship "...Isup to you." When the Pilot makes his decision, asking where a phone he could use is, Locus acts without mercy or malice, shooting the pilot in the back and telling him, clearly and honestly, that "Nobody's going to find your ship either." Locus holds a degree of interest in individuals he considers "true soldiers", such as Washington and The Meta. He constantly questions Washington on his past, the decisions he has made, and as to why he has followed the path he has chosen. Later, after suffering multiple defeats at the hands of the united forces of Chorus, he turns to Aiden Price, asking him about Agent Maine, and his transformation into the entity that people knew him as. As he learned more about Maine and his eerily disturbing goals, Locus began to question himself. In The Federal Army of Chorus, much more of his personality traits are seen. He displays a cynical, dark perspective on life, claiming that soldiers aren't meant to care for anyone or anything other then completing the objective to how they see fit. During his discussion with Aiden Price, Locus is visibly shaken when Price claims that had Agent Maine fit those ideals, he would have been nothing more than a slave. It is revealed in the episode Locus of Control, however, that Locus was initially a more empathetic and compassionate soldier while serving under the UNSC during the Great War. In the episode, Locus sees an recreation of an event in his past after entering a gateway on Chorus. In said event, Locus shows concern towards a "monster" he and his comrades are interrogating, where Locus tries to persuade his leader to restrain or release it rather than kill it, as Felix suggests. However, his leader angrily tells him that in a war, his job is to be nothing more than a suit of armor and a gun, to follow all orders without question or thought. Upon seeing this illusion, Locus breaks down. In a later episode, Locus shows respect towards his comrades, expressing doubt and reluctance upon realizing their plan will cause them to die too. This shows he cares for the people who trust him, and those he considers to be worthy teammates. Locus eventually abandons his orders, betraying Felix and allowing him to die, proving that he has been running from his past. His apathetic personality and soldier mentality was merely a cover up to cope with the atrocities he had committed in the name of orders. He owns up to the fact that he is "a monster" and openly states his desire to correct his past mistakes, but claims that he will never do so behind bars. Skills and Abilities Weaponry Locus has been shown to have skills with several weapons. His skills with the sniper rifle are superb, as he would have killed Washington if Felix didn't interfere and snipes a plasma grenade near Donut to injure him. In Fire, Locus is shown to use the Railgun very effectively, as he quickly incapacitates Washington and Sarge with it. Along with this, Locus has been seen to use a shotgun, a pistol, a SAW, a Sticky Detonator, and an Incineration Cannon in battle. Based on his consistent appearances with the SAW, it can be theorized this is his preferred weapon. Combat Locus has proven himself to be a deadly combatant, being responsible for incapacitating most of the members of the Reds and Blues during the battle at Crash Site Bravo and is shown to be skilled in close range combat, as he executes three rebel soldiers as he approaches the remaining members of the Blood Gulch teams. Along with this, Locus often incorporates his active camouflage in combat situations and his own attack strategies. Instead of engaging the enemy head on or in a firefight, he will cloak himself and wait for the precise opportunity to strike. It also seems that many within both the New Republic and Federal Army of Chorus fear him, as when Felix mentions Locus to 'headquarters', the operator is clearly scared. In Fed vs. New, Locus also shows skill in martial arts, being able to hold his own against both Carolina and Washington in hand-to-hand combat. During a duel with Carolina, Locus held the upper hand, with Wash's intervention thwarting a possible victory. Locus was however, able to incapacitate Carolina with Felix's aid before taking Wash on his own, which he defeated before he and Felix were forced to retreat. Intelligence Locus is shown to be very calculative, allowing him to make the best choices that specifically benefit himself. For example, Locus stops a pilot to prevent others of learning the location of the crash site and instead of immediately attacking the Reds and Blues, he observes them from a distance and wisely sends in a team of soldiers as cannon fodder in Neighborhood Watch in order for him to know about the Reds' and Blues' skills. It was also revealed later on that Locus is bilinguistic, knowing both English and Spanish. Unlike Felix, Locus doesn't underestimate the Blood Gulch Crew, especially Washington, as he brings four additional mercs to Radio Jammer Station 1C, knowing if the Reds and Blues disable it to contact the Chorus armies, their entire mission will be a failure. Leadership Using his skills and the fear others have of him, Locus is shown to be a excellent leader. In Season 11, Locus commands a large group of Federal Army soldiers and leads a successful attack at Crash Site Bravo, resulting with the remaining Blood Gulch soldiers to retreat. Despite being the leader of the Federal Army, Doyle often seeks Locus' opinion on how to lead his army. Along with this, interactions with the Space Pirates show they follow his orders just as much, if not more, than Control. For example, in Self Assessment, Jackson's team change their plan after Locus contacts them, despite Control giving them different orders just moments before. In Fed vs. New, the Space Pirates immediately ask him what they should do when the Chorus armies learn the truth about their plans. Trivia *Locus draws comparisons from other main antagonists, such as Omega and The Meta. Like Omega, Locus' voice has a deep bass and he finds pleasure in violence. Like The Meta, Locus is very calm, stoic and often uses the cloaking armor enhancement. *It is revealed in Ready…Aim… that Locus doesn't use his real name, but rather a name based on his armor (specifically his helmet). This is similar to Freelancers using their assigned state name rather than their real names. *Locus' armor in Halo 4 consists of a Locus helmet (hence his name), Infiltrator torso, Engineer left and right shoulders, and Outer-Plated arms and legs. *Locus appears at Crash Site Bravo (and speaks for the first time) in the tenth episode of Season 11, similar to the tradition where Tex makes a bold appearance in the tenth episode of several seasons. Along with this, he is shown to have Active Camouflage, an armor enhancement that Tex also possessed. *Locus might be a reference to Darth Vader from the Star Wars ''franchise as both characters have deep voices, dark colored armor, forsook their birth name, are incredibly skilled fighters, serve as the primary villains of their stories although they are not in charge of the antagonistic faction and commanded numerous white armored soldiers. **Incidentally, both turned on their masters by the end of their respective trilogies and redeemed themselves. *The word Locus is Latin and refers to a 'source' or "focal point', or alternatively when used in mathematics to refer to a set of factors that when combined satisfy a requirement or task. *Locus' voice helmet filter is noticeably different from other characters, as it is less compressed and more deep and acoustic sounding, adding to his menacing persona. *Relius Clover from ''BlazBlue is a parallel to Locus in almost every ways. **Both speak in creepy monotone. **Are very efficient at what they do. **Both have aspirations of becoming something greater than they already are. **Both were completely manipulated by their former partners (Relius to Terumi and Hades Izanami and Locus to Felix). **And both are still alive. 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